Often as adults we forget the carefree enthusiasm of our childhood as we feel compelled to remain inside the lines, blindly and faithfully doing what we’re told the same way we followed what “Simon said” to do when he instructed us to place our right hand on our head or our left foot behind us.  But, what if (oh- there is that inspirational phrase “what if?”) we don’t stay within the lines, but rather- we color wildly outside the box splashing bright colors of red, orange and yellow all over the blank page until our work turns into something beautifully abstract and unique.  Is it possible to turn an innocent curiosity into a passion for life or for some aspect of life, such as love, friendship , family, a sport, hobby or craft?

Last month when my youngest son asked for my help with his English assignment for which he was to write about Emily Dickinson’s “There Came a Wind Like a Bugle” my first step was to research the analysis’s written by experts in the field.  After all, I knew I was not an expert on Emily Dickinson, therefore I couldn’t possibly expect to come to a sound understanding on my own that could be “correct” enough.  However, after reading over many essays and articles I felt disappointed to find only the same boring response repeated over and over by each critique, which in my view, was the obvious one to which anyone would conclude; “the poem is about how a fierce storm can destroy things”.

Notwithstanding, upon reading the poem several times- that simple description fit like an uncomfortable pair of jeans, therefore; I had no choice but to toss it out and come up with another one. 

Consequently, I decided to be brave and examine Dickinson’s poem my own way, viewing its meaning the way I saw it instead of the way I thought everyone else would or should.

While the poem certainly illustrated that a natural storm has the ability to cause great damage, there are other dangers that have the same power.  Because Emily Dickinson wrote this poem around the time of the 1961-1965 Civil War, I viewed the poem as a subtle portrayal of war and the devastation that war causes to those left behind in its awful wake.  Like nature, man-made dangers contain the same powerful ability to reek havoc on lives and on the world to the same degree to which nature does, if not even a greater ability.

Yet, incredibly, in the end after the dust falls away, the ocean continues to sweep up against the sand in high and low tides, the grasses continue to sway with the peaceful breezes on the open prairies and suburbia back yards, and the nearly 5, 000 year old methuselah bristlecone pine tree in California’s White Mountains proceeds to grow as one of the worlds oldest trees.  Despite the dangers we fight and the tragedies, calamities and obstacles we face each day of our lives the world goes on and with it- life.

In Emily Dickinson’s poem, some saw the danger of the storm and I saw the poet’s need to sort through her emotions toward the many other dangers we might fear, and further, that although we can often feel powerless or hopeless, there is always the wonder of life and the drive to survive that continues to empower us.  Now, if only we can find a way to reignite the sometimes lost carefree enthusiasm we cherished as children- in order to trust ourselves more.  We might do this not only through the telling and reading of  big stories written simply but through “big life” felt deeply, with meaning.  Emily Dickinson knew that and so should the rest of us as we allow ourselves to let go enough to finally feel free to color wildly outside the box once and for all.

With regard to the questions taken on by a story- to the extent each are answered depends on the power of the story. This power comes from the author’s ability to draw in, inspire and sustain the interest of the reader.  By lighting a match to invite that first spark a fire will emerge, powerful and strong.

In Jonathan Aldridge’s February 2015 interview with Warren Adler for The Writer, Mr. Adler states, “there is no way to address the big questions without first captivating the reader’s emotional interest”. But, how does one do that? 

Whether in simple children’s stories that open a child’s eyes in wonder or whether in large adult stories that influence readers to peel away the layers, think deep or dispel confusion over the meaning of life, death or love, there are questions that need asking.

For instance, in Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina old patriarchal values that support the landowning aristocracy contrast with the newer freethinking values of westernizers and their obsessions with technology, rationalism, democracy, and freedom, all of which beg to examine differences in values and beliefs, or conversely, with which to identify. Why must there be different classes within one society? Why can’t everyone treat one another with the same care they treat others?  Is there a cost to freedom?

Likewise, providing fuel to spark a fire, Tolstoy drops further suggestions to debate the appeal or outrage of women’s rights, the fading tradition of arranged marriage argued against the potential to find happiness in marriage by choice, or the institution of traditional family and the happiness versus unhappiness associated with it, as well as the limitations of freedom, and the idea that faith, happiness and family life can all be aligned with one another.  Why must the rewards of family be compromised by dysfunction and unhappiness?  Is this something we bring on ourselves or is it a natural consequence?

Each question stirs intrigue through story lines and plots within large adult depictions of aspirations, failures or successes. These questions are deep yet simple at the same time. We can find universal questions taken on by small, simple stories written for children just as easily, opening doors to new and exciting worlds and opening minds to new beginnings in which to explore new found friendships, secrets and adventures. After all that is where it begins for all of us at some point in time…..in the innocence of our childhood when our minds were open and eager to learn.

In another one of my personal favorite childhood stories, written by Mildred Myrick in 1963, three boys form a friendship born of innocence, curiosity and the natural innate desire for adventure. “The Secret Three” I CAN READ book centers on a lighthouse and boats and a secret club, writing things in code and messages in a bottle- all the adventurous things children find enchanting. Even the title is mysterious and intriguing for young readers, imploring from them questions of possibilities and “what if’s”.  In fact, I have no doubt Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer would have sought escape and adventure with Mark, Billy and Tom and their quest for escapade, thrill and friendship.

The Secret Three is certainly a simple early reader story, but heartfelt and as real and big to children as are the advanced adult story lines explored through Tolstoy’s and others adult authors’ famous classics.  From the ‘I CAN READ” books of my childhood. to the big giant adult masterpiece classics like Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina,  Mary Shelley’s Valperga and Steinbeck’s Of mice and men,  readers are drawn to the “fire” by their passion to seek life’s answers to the questions that drive them as humans.

As in life, the largest and most lasting fires begin with a small spark and it is the writer’s pledge to provide that flicker by encouraging questions, desire and interest. Regardless of whether those questions are answered it is the power to open the reader’s mind to wanting to know that matters. But, of one thing I am certain- there is little chance to light a fire with only wet matches.